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GUSTAVE CLARENCE RODOLPHE BOULANGER FRENCH, 1824-88 LE HAREM DU PALAIS signed and dated G. Boulanger 1877 (lower left) oil on canvas 33 by 45in. 83.8 by 114.3cm. PROVENANCE Estate of Mary Dolly Schuchard Orphaned at the age of 14, Gustave Boulanger was raised by an uncle. At an early age, he displayed a talent for painting and drawing, and his uncle enrolled him in the atelier of Jollivet, a moderately successful history painter. Boulanger's parents were of Creole origin, and their descriptions of the luxurious landscapes of their homeland of Santo Domingo awakened in their son a passion for exoticism which colored his entire career. An 1845 journey to the Middle East to oversee his uncle's business affairs further fueled the young artist's interest in distant cultures. After eight months abroad, Boulanger reluctantly returned home, filled with enthusiasm for the Orient, and a trunk filled with sketches, which he would refer back to throughout his career. Boulanger was also influenced by Neoclassicism, having studied with the Academician Paul Delaroche, and travelled throughout Italy in 1849 after winning the Prix de Rome. Boulanger alternated throughout his career between the Neoclassical style in which he was trained, and depictions of sumptuous Orientalist scenes inspired by his excursion to the East. Le harem du Palais demonstrates Boulanger's remarkable ability to depict Orientalist scenes with truth and sincerity, without resorting to flashiness or sentimentality. His sketches and memories from his trips to the Orient aided him in his composition. In Le harem du Palais Boulanger has made the figures come to life. A bevy of beautiful women relaxes in an arched courtyard, where they are joined by two sultans engaged in nonchalant conversation, a eunuch and a young girl. The odalisques are draped in rich fabric and jewels, with ornaments in their hair. The child, dancing with her doll, lends an air of innocence to a scene otherwise associated with sensual pleasures. No detail of the sumptuous palace escaped Boulanger, from the rich intricacies of the woven rugs, to the patterns of the tiles and the inlaid furniture. The lighting of the interior, which draws upon Moroccan architecture is dotted with lush vegetation, and a shimmering pool in the courtyard enhances the exotic luxury of the setting. The table set for tea, and incense burner are also well-observed authentic details which Boulanger garnered from his travels. The present painting is related to Le gynecee, which was exhibited at the Salon of 1875 (location unknown). Despite the exceptional quality of Le harem du Palais, there is no contemporary record regarding its commission or exhibition, nor is it in the photographic archives of Bingham and Goupil. It might be possible that a collector saw Le gynecee at the Salon, and contacted Boulanger to commission a similar work. This arrangement would account for the lack of contemporary information about the work, as it never would have been seen in public. Unfortunately, Boulanger did not keep records of the buyers of his works. A study for Le harem du Palais was sold at Versailles in 1980. Save for a few secondary details, the composition is the same, and Boulanger must have created it to study color and spatial relationships. We are grateful to Damien Bartoli for his assistance in cataloguing this lot.